WordPress vs Joomla: Which CMS Should You Choose?

WordPress vs Joomla is one of the first choices you make when building a site. Both are free, open-source content management systems (CMS) that have been around for years – but they suit different people. This guide compares them on ease of use, flexibility, community, and hosting, so you can pick with confidence.

The quick answer

For most people – blogs, business sites, shops, portfolios – WordPress is the easier, better-supported choice, and it powers over 40% of all websites. Joomla is a capable middle ground for developers who want more built-in structure for complex, multi-level content, at the cost of a steeper learning curve.

Ease of use

WordPress is famously beginner-friendly: a clean dashboard, a huge choice of themes, and visual page builders mean you can launch without touching code. Joomla is more powerful out of the box but assumes more technical comfort – its admin area has a steeper curve for newcomers.

Flexibility and extensions

WordPress has by far the largest ecosystem – tens of thousands of plugins and themes for almost any need, including WooCommerce for online stores. Joomla has fewer extensions but stronger built-in multilingual and user-management features, which some complex sites prefer.

Community and support

WordPress’s enormous community means answers to almost any question are a search away, and nearly every host optimises for it. Joomla’s community is smaller but dedicated. If you value finding help quickly, WordPress wins.

Hosting either one

Both run on standard cPanel hosting and install in minutes. If you choose WordPress, a plan tuned for it – like JetHost WordPress hosting – adds caching, security, and a manager that makes day-to-day upkeep easier. Joomla runs well on the same web hosting too.

Need more help?

Still deciding, or ready to launch? Open a ticket through Client Area → Support and we’ll help you get started on the right CMS.